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On a blustery Saturday in early February, amidst the churning grey waters and a symphony of high winds and barking sea lions, a vibrant scene unfolded at the Port of Newport, Oregon. A small, dedicated group, their brightly colored raincoats a stark contrast to the dramatic seascape, gathered on the docks. Their attention was fixed on Taunette Dixon, a co-founder of Newport Fishermen’s Wives, as she stood before her family’s vessel, the Tauny Ann, articulating the profound challenges confronting today’s fishing communities. Dixon highlighted the escalating costs of essential fishing and crabbing permits, a burden that disproportionately impacts small, independent operators.
"The fishing industry has taken a lot of hits in the last few years, and most of them hit the small guys the hardest," Dixon emphasized, her voice rising above the din of dock work. "We’re seeing more and more families not being able to afford to maintain a small commercial fishing vessel, leading to more large businesses taking over." Her core message resonated deeply: residents of the Pacific Northwest are uniquely fortunate to have access to fresh, local seafood year-round, and actively supporting local fishers ensures that consumers are choosing products sustainably caught within their own region. This dockside assembly, set against the backdrop of the self-proclaimed Dungeness Crab Capital of the World, was a pivotal segment of the Blue Line, a coastal field trip designed to immerse the public in Newport’s vital "blue economy" – a sustainable system centered on local seafood. The Blue Line is a cornerstone event of Winter Waters, an expansive seafood-focused series that spanned much of the Oregon coast from February 1 to March 1.
The Paradox of Plenty: Oregon’s Seafood Supply Chain Disconnect
The prevailing assumption for visitors to coastal Oregon is that the seafood on their plates originates from the abundant local waters. However, as numerous studies reveal, this is often a misconception. A 2024 report from the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) disclosed that a staggering 80 percent of all seafood consumed in the United States is imported, primarily from countries such as Canada, Chile, India, Indonesia, and Vietnam. This national trend is even more pronounced in Oregon, a state blessed with 362 miles of coastline and thriving stocks of albacore tuna, salmon, pink shrimp, Dungeness crab, and various bottom-feeding fish like flounder and lingcod.
A 2022 study conducted for the Oregon Coast Visitors Association (OCVA) delivered a stark revelation: an astonishing 90 percent of the seafood sold and consumed directly on the Oregon coast itself was imported from other regions of the country or even from across the globe. Concurrently, the rich bounty harvested from Oregon’s productive waters was largely being exported elsewhere, bypassing local markets. Laura Anderson, founder of Local Ocean Seafoods in Newport, a restaurant renowned for sourcing directly from the boats at the Port of Newport, expressed the widespread surprise this data elicits. "It’s a big shock to people to read that," Anderson stated, echoing the sentiment of many who assume local origin for coastal dining. This disconnect underscores a critical challenge: a region abundant in marine resources struggles to ensure those resources reach its own communities and support its local economy. The implications extend beyond economics, impacting environmental sustainability through increased food miles and weakening regional food security.
Winter Waters: A Movement Emerges from Shared Passion
The Winter Waters initiative was conceived to bridge this widening gap, fostering a direct connection between consumers and the diverse, sustainable seafood harvested from the Pacific. "There’s a hunger for greater connectivity in our food systems," remarked Kristen Penner, a seafood value chain strategist and co-founder of Winter Waters. She, along with seaweed farmer Alanna Kieffer and sustainable seafood marketing specialist Rachelle Hacmac, founded the series in 2023. Penner elaborated on their shared vision, stating, "Sometimes the answer you need is just one person away, a matter of one degree of separation. Winter Waters is about connecting those dots."
The genesis of Winter Waters can be traced to a shared love for seaweed and a common concern for the vulnerability of local food systems. In 2022, Kieffer was cultivating Pacific dulse for Oregon Seaweed and developing educational marine workshops through her company, Shifting Tides. Concurrently, Hacmac was instrumental in introducing Alaskan kelp products to the Portland market, while Penner served as the regional value coordinator for the OCVA, actively linking fishers with markets. When the three women converged that fall, they quickly discovered a powerful synergy born from their mutual passions and anxieties, particularly regarding the detrimental impact of the pandemic on the local seafood industry. "Covid happened and our supply chains fell apart," Penner recalled, describing it as a "wake-up call." The pervasive question was, "Why is it so hard to get this amazing, nutrient-dense protein that’s literally in our backyards?" Their collective determination swiftly led to the realization that, by collaborating, they could actively facilitate this connection.
The inaugural Winter Waters series in February 2023 featured 10 events, notably including a prix-fixe menu centered on seaweed pairings. "That first year it was really highlighting seaweed as a culinary ingredient," Kieffer explained. "Now it’s about so much more—about all of Oregon seafood and the people behind it and why it matters to keep Oregon seafood local." Now in its fourth year, the series has expanded significantly, offering approximately two dozen diverse experiences, ranging from multi-course dinners and dock tours to tastings, workshops, seminars, and panel discussions. These events are meticulously curated to bridge the divide between consumers and sustainable seafood sources. Last year, the initiative attracted over 2,600 registrants, predominantly local residents, but also drawing attendees from as far afield as the East Coast and Iceland, underscoring its growing appeal and relevance.
Connecting Consumers to the Coast: Experiential Learning on the Blue Line
The Blue Line coastal field trip epitomizes Winter Waters’ commitment to experiential learning. This self-guided journey empowers participants to engage directly with seafood producers and gain a profound understanding of their craft. This year, 192 ticket holders embarked on the Blue Line, visiting key institutions and businesses along the Newport waterfront. Stops included the Oregon Coast Aquarium, where guests conversed with volunteers dedicated to reforesting vital kelp forests; the Hatfield Marine Science Center, offering insights into oyster farming; and the Pacific Maritime Heritage Center, where fishers openly discussed the current state of the seafood industry. A particularly engaging stop was the Central Coast Food Web (CCFW), where participants had the unique opportunity to interact with wriggling sea urchins raised for uni, providing a tangible connection to the diverse marine life harvested in the region.
The series now commences with the Blue Foods Forum, a two-day, solutions-oriented conference specifically designed for industry experts. However, the majority of Winter Waters events are accessible to the public, attracting a remarkably diverse audience. This includes seasoned elderly fishermen, aspiring marine biology students, innovative seafood-centric chefs, nature-inspired artists, and curious nonprofessionals, all united by a shared interest in Oregon’s marine bounty.
Oregon’s Productive Waters: Economic and Environmental Imperatives
Oregon’s coastline is a hub of commercial fishing activity. According to 2024 data from the Oregon Department of Employment, approximately 1,200 commercial fishers operate on about 800 vessels annually across the state. The highest concentration of this activity is found in Lincoln County, home to Newport, where the typical fishing boat is often crewed by just one to four individuals, highlighting the prevalence of small, family-run operations. Alanna Kieffer passionately described the unique conditions that make Oregon’s waters so productive: "People here never use the term ‘beach’—it’s always the ‘coast.’ Our water is cold and murky, and that’s because it is full of nutrients. It fuels all of this seafood: tuna, crab, shellfish, so much kelp."
The benefits of consuming locally sourced seafood extend far beyond mere proximity. It ensures the freshest flavor, ideal texture, and maximum nutritional value. Moreover, Kristen Penner underscored the crucial climate and economic impacts. "It just doesn’t make sense that we ship seafood overseas—that’s a pretty big carbon footprint," Penner explained. "Buying local is one way to support the people in our communities that are doing the really amazing hard work of feeding us." This sentiment reflects a growing awareness of the environmental costs associated with global supply chains and the importance of strengthening local economies.
However, increasing in-state demand for Oregon-caught seafood faces logistical hurdles. Even in metropolitan areas like Portland, markets frequently struggle to meet the demand for local delicacies such as Dungeness crab during peak season. "We’re remote," Kieffer noted, pointing to the geographical challenges. "It’s tricky to get seafood from a boat to a restaurant over the mountains that get covered in snow in the wintertime." Laura Anderson of Local Ocean Seafoods further elaborated on the complexities of direct sourcing: "Local Ocean buys direct from the fleet across the street, and it’s hard. I can’t imagine most seafood businesses maintaining relationships with dozens of different vessels, the timing, having to take their entire fish load." She highlighted the lack of consistency in product availability and price when dealing directly with fishers, which can be challenging for restaurant operations. "You can’t just say, ‘Bring me 10 pounds of petrale sole on Tuesday and another 10 pounds on Friday.’ Sometimes they don’t catch the fish that they thought they were going to catch."
Innovating Solutions: Local Ocean and Seafood Hubs
Despite these formidable challenges, Local Ocean Seafoods has pioneered successful strategies for local sourcing. Amber Morris, affectionately known as the "Fish Goddess" since 2007, serves as the vital liaison between the restaurant and approximately 70 local fishermen. It is Morris who makes the regular trips to boats like the Dixon family’s Tauny Ann to procure salmon, tuna, shrimp, or crab. The restaurant’s menu, which proudly features the names of its supplying fishing vessels, dynamically shifts with the seasons, offering simple classics like fish and chips alongside daily specials dictated by the day’s catch.
Crucially, Local Ocean also leverages its freezer capacity to ensure year-round availability of local seafood. "Local Ocean uses frozen fish so we can provide local year-round," Anderson explained, advocating for other restaurants to adopt this model. She challenged a pervasive consumer myth: "Getting past the ‘fresh is better than frozen’ myth is a huge win for everyone. Higher quality, less food waste, more control—and more local." This innovative approach helps stabilize supply and supports local fishers by allowing them to sell their catch even during peak harvest.
Winter Waters actively supports similar innovations by championing the development of seafood hubs—centrally located shared facilities that enable small producers to process, package, store, or distribute their catches more efficiently. The Central Coast Food Web (CCFW) in Newport, co-founded by Anderson and Penner in 2022, is a prime example. As one of five such seafood hubs in Oregon, CCFW provides a shared-use processing facility for seafood and farm businesses. An adjacent complex houses a sea urchin ranch and the Oregon Ocean Cluster’s emerging ‘OMX’ (Oregon Mariculture Accelerator) project, an R&D mariculture farm focused on trialing land-based seaweed farming and value-added products. Kieffer detailed the benefits: "They have processing and packaging equipment for small producers who can rent things—and kitchen space. Not every fisherman needs to have a vacuum sealer, and cold storage is usually very limited." During the Blue Line tour at CCFW, participants can explore the hub, sample products like canned tuna and seafood broth, and learn firsthand about the seafood supply chain, discovering new local favorites in the process.
Championing Equity: Empowering Women in the Water
Beyond advocating for local products, the Winter Waters founders are deeply committed to fostering diversity and equity within the seafood industry, both in terms of species harvested and the people engaged in the harvest. Rachelle Hacmac challenged a common perception: "There’s an assumption that it’s a male-dominated industry, but it really isn’t." In fact, women constitute 50 percent of the global seafood workforce, according to a 2024 report from the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. However, more recent research indicates that women hold as little as 4 percent of leadership roles within the industry, and existing studies often fail to collect data on individuals identifying beyond the gender binary, highlighting a significant disparity.
This year, Winter Waters hosted a groundbreaking conference in Newport titled "Women of the Water." Co-hosted by Julie Kuchepatov, founder of Seafood and Gender Equality (SAGE)—an Oregon-based global nonprofit—and Becca Williams, SAGE’s director of gender strategies, the event addressed critical issues of representation and inclusion. "Our mission is to ensure that women and genderqueer folks are getting the recognition that they deserve for their contributions to the sector and that their voices are heard in spaces where decisions are made," Williams affirmed. The event, limited to 22 spaces, quickly sold out and generated a substantial waitlist, underscoring the urgent demand for such a gathering.
Williams articulated the broader societal implications: "What is needed in the seafood sector right now is not too far off from what is needed generally—and that is an open heart toward questions like: How do we create policies and practices that really center wellbeing?" She emphasized practical considerations within the workplace, such as leading with compassion and ensuring that individuals feel fully supported in their roles on fishing vessels. Specific examples included addressing the scarcity of fishing gear designed for female bodies and improving safety protocols during weeklong expeditions when a woman might be the sole female crew member. To further highlight women’s contributions to Oregon’s coastal seafood industry, Winter Waters actively purchases and promotes products from local women-run seafood companies, including Local Ocean and SueAnna Harrison’s Oregon’s Choice Tuna. The series also commissions local women chefs who champion sustainable seafood, such as Portland-based U’ilaniku’ulei Vele and Maylin Chávez, for pop-up food stands and sit-down dinners, including the popular Seafaring Speakeasy that follows the Blue Foods Forum.
The Ripple Effect: Economic Vitality and a Vision for the Future
The timing of Winter Waters is a strategic choice. "February is a slow time in the restaurant industry on the coast," Hacmac explained, noting that "Chefs have more time to be creative with us." Kieffer added, "It’s also when businesses like restaurants and hotels really need our support." The economic impact is tangible: in 2025, Winter Waters events generated $79,808 for participating food and beverage businesses along the Oregon coast. Additionally, the initiative donated $6,235 to nonprofit partners, including the Oregon Kelp Alliance and FishHer, demonstrating a commitment to broader community support.
Beyond this crucial injection of income during the off-season, the influence of Winter Waters creates a ripple effect, inspiring new products and initiatives. Following a presentation by the 100% Fish Project—an Icelandic endeavor focused on reducing waste—at the 2025 Blue Foods Forum, Laura Anderson was inspired to maximize the utilization of whole fish arriving at Local Ocean. This past year, the restaurant began experimenting with less commonly requested fish parts, incorporating them into seafood broths and developing fish-skin dog treats, now available at the restaurant’s market. The inspiration extended further: two other attendees, galvanized by the 100% Fish Project, subsequently founded Reclaim Cooperative in Hoskins, Oregon, a fish tannery that crafts sustainable seafood leather goods from fish skins.
In a significant move towards long-term sustainability and tourism, the founders of Winter Waters, in partnership with the OCVA and Oregon Ocean Cluster, are developing the Oregon Coast Seafood Trail. This carefully coordinated route, designed to highlight partnerships with local businesses, is slated to launch later this year. The concept draws inspiration from successful initiatives elsewhere, such as the Local Catch Network, the Maine Oyster Trail, the Monterey Bay Aquarium Seafood Watch, and South Carolina’s Good Catch program. To qualify for inclusion on the Seafood Trail, businesses must commit to serving at least 50 percent local fish and shellfish. "This will become an easily accessible online list for visitors and locals alike to find places that truly have local seafood," Hacmac affirmed. This initiative will encompass a diverse range of establishments, from upscale dining to quality fish-and-chips spots like Squatchsami in Lincoln City, whose co-owner, Debbie Martin, shared her ambitious goal with Kieffer: "to get Atlantic cod off every fish and chips menu in Oregon."
The Winter Waters founders recognize that the challenges faced by Oregon’s working waterfronts and coastal communities are not unique. Similar struggles to build robust local seafood economies resonate across the nation. "We’re really excited about what the future holds," Penner stated, looking ahead. "Especially as we dive deeper into what else is possible, connecting with a larger community to learn and share resources to accelerate this movement—not just here, but everywhere." This vision positions Winter Waters not merely as a local event, but as a potential blueprint for fostering sustainable, equitable, and economically vibrant seafood systems in coastal regions worldwide.
The final events of this year’s Winter Waters series include a crab picking demonstration in Gold Beach, a comprehensive tour of Port Orford, a unique seaweed cyanotype class in Brookings, and several special seafood-centric meals. Further details and ticket information can be found on the Winter Waters website.
